Issigonis Prototype 1970 Mini 9X 'Gearless'
The Atwell-Wilson Motor Museum is now home to the Issigonis Prototype 1970 Mini 9X 'Gearless', donated to the Museum by the Heritage Motor Centre at Gaydon, Warwickshire.
SOL 258H is the oldest surviving gearless car and was the preferred transport of Sir Alex Issigonis. It was designed to follow on from the Mini and 1100 as the next generation of small car. Issigonis' objective was to reduce manufacturing and maintenance costs without sacrificing passenger space of performance.
Issigonis
Alec Issigonis (1906-1988) was one of the most original car designers of the modern era, he is best known as the creator of the Mini, but he also designed two more of the five best selling cars in British motoring history - the Morris Minor and the Austin 1100.
When asked to describe his approach to car design, he said: "One thing that I learnt the hard way - well not the hard way, the easy way - when you're designing a new car for production, never, never copy the opposition."
When asked to describe his approach to car design, he said: "One thing that I learnt the hard way - well not the hard way, the easy way - when you're designing a new car for production, never, never copy the opposition."
Born Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis, in Smyrna, then a Greek port, but now the Turkish city of Izmir, his father was of Greek Origin and his mother of German origin, but both had been born and raised in Turkey.
Issigonis showed no interest in motor cars as an infant and was twelve years old before he even went in one. Alec was brought to England by his mother in 1922 where he initially settled in Clapham, London and later moved to Purley, home to several other refugee families. In 1925 Alec enrolled on a three year engineering course at Battersea Polytechnic.
When he graduated his mother brought him a car to go on a tour of Europe before starting work. The car, like most at the time, was unreliable, and the experience motivated Issigonis to try and improve the experience of driving for everyone.
Issigonis' first job was as a draughtsman and salesman for an engineering consultant who was developing a type of semi-automatic transmission. In 1936 Issigonis was offered a post of steering and suspension engineer at Morris Motors. During World War II, Morris Motors undertook military work. As a member of a reserved occupation Issigonis was excused service in the armed forces and remained at the company's Cowley plant near Oxford. Despite Morris Motors' commitment to the war effort, the company remained committed to the development of a popular, compact production car. Time, labour and resources, including much of Issigonis' leisure time, were devoted to the prototyping of a small two-seater car which eventually delivered the Morris Minor.
Alec had a brief period at Alvis following Morris Motors merger with Austin Motor Company in 1952 to form British Motor Corporation (BMC). However, when Alvis cancelled its luxury car project Issigonis was invited back to BMC by Sir Leonard Lord, with the mission to combat the increasing imports of inexpensive bubble cars from Germany and Italy. The project was initally called Austin Design Office Project 15 (ADO 15). The developed design was revolutionary and went on to become the best-selling car in Europe - the Mini.
The Mini was launched in 1959, after an exceptionally short period to develop and produce a new design. It had an initial production run of 20,000 cars priced at £496 each.
Not content with the success of the Mini and the 1100, Issigonis made it his mission to devise the next generation of small car. The first step was to replace the reliable but ageing 'A-series' engine with a lighter more compact power unit. His '9X' design achieved this by using an aluminium cylinder head, crankcase and gearbox. The second element was revised suspension. Turning away from subframes, rubber cones and a 'Hydrolastic' fluid system, he devised a layout based on vertical struts.
When BMC became part of British Leyland in 1968 Issigonis was moved from Technical Director to Director of Research and Development. During this time he built two complete prototype vehicles to demonstrate these principles, but in 1970 British Leyland excluded the '9X' engine from the production plan. In 1971 Issigonis retired and took on a new role of Advanced Design Consultant. A reduced budget meant building complete prototypes from scratch was no longer practical. So he modified a variety of production vehicles, changing experimental engines from car to car to gather extensive test data. Many reports were prepared for the ever-changing fact of management to convince them that the '9X' concept was sound.
By 1986 five million Minis has been manufactured by BMC, an achievement Issigonis was proud of saying:
"Don't expect me to be modest about the Mini. I'm very proud that it has run for so many years without a major mechanical change and it still looks like the car we designed. Five million people have brought my Mini and it just goes to show that they have a lot of common sense."
Issigonis showed no interest in motor cars as an infant and was twelve years old before he even went in one. Alec was brought to England by his mother in 1922 where he initially settled in Clapham, London and later moved to Purley, home to several other refugee families. In 1925 Alec enrolled on a three year engineering course at Battersea Polytechnic.
When he graduated his mother brought him a car to go on a tour of Europe before starting work. The car, like most at the time, was unreliable, and the experience motivated Issigonis to try and improve the experience of driving for everyone.
Issigonis' first job was as a draughtsman and salesman for an engineering consultant who was developing a type of semi-automatic transmission. In 1936 Issigonis was offered a post of steering and suspension engineer at Morris Motors. During World War II, Morris Motors undertook military work. As a member of a reserved occupation Issigonis was excused service in the armed forces and remained at the company's Cowley plant near Oxford. Despite Morris Motors' commitment to the war effort, the company remained committed to the development of a popular, compact production car. Time, labour and resources, including much of Issigonis' leisure time, were devoted to the prototyping of a small two-seater car which eventually delivered the Morris Minor.
Alec had a brief period at Alvis following Morris Motors merger with Austin Motor Company in 1952 to form British Motor Corporation (BMC). However, when Alvis cancelled its luxury car project Issigonis was invited back to BMC by Sir Leonard Lord, with the mission to combat the increasing imports of inexpensive bubble cars from Germany and Italy. The project was initally called Austin Design Office Project 15 (ADO 15). The developed design was revolutionary and went on to become the best-selling car in Europe - the Mini.
The Mini was launched in 1959, after an exceptionally short period to develop and produce a new design. It had an initial production run of 20,000 cars priced at £496 each.
Not content with the success of the Mini and the 1100, Issigonis made it his mission to devise the next generation of small car. The first step was to replace the reliable but ageing 'A-series' engine with a lighter more compact power unit. His '9X' design achieved this by using an aluminium cylinder head, crankcase and gearbox. The second element was revised suspension. Turning away from subframes, rubber cones and a 'Hydrolastic' fluid system, he devised a layout based on vertical struts.
When BMC became part of British Leyland in 1968 Issigonis was moved from Technical Director to Director of Research and Development. During this time he built two complete prototype vehicles to demonstrate these principles, but in 1970 British Leyland excluded the '9X' engine from the production plan. In 1971 Issigonis retired and took on a new role of Advanced Design Consultant. A reduced budget meant building complete prototypes from scratch was no longer practical. So he modified a variety of production vehicles, changing experimental engines from car to car to gather extensive test data. Many reports were prepared for the ever-changing fact of management to convince them that the '9X' concept was sound.
By 1986 five million Minis has been manufactured by BMC, an achievement Issigonis was proud of saying:
"Don't expect me to be modest about the Mini. I'm very proud that it has run for so many years without a major mechanical change and it still looks like the car we designed. Five million people have brought my Mini and it just goes to show that they have a lot of common sense."
The gearless concept
Alongside the '9X' engine, Issigonis began to work on a 'gearless' concept, which he christened the 'City Car'. Four gearless Minis appear in the records. The earliest is a red Mini from 1968 (NOB 529F) fitted with an adapted 1375 cc 'A-series' engine and its first incarnations, without a reverse gear. This was still on test in 1975 but has not survived. The other three (SOL 258H, LOK 576P and GNP 677S) were fitted with his experimental '9X' engine. The third car was later converted back to a geared car.
Issigonis became cross when people called his gearless vehicles 'automatic'. They had no clutch, gearbox or any other form of variable ratio transmission. Instead, forward and reverse drive was taken through a torque converter. The engine was tuned and increased in capactiy to give sufficient performance over a wide rev-band.
Issigonis insisted: "it is inconceivable that people would put up with so much work gear shifting when this could be completely eliminated while also achieveing better overall fuel economy". Among other potential benefits he listed were smoothness of drive even for inexperienced drivers; easy servicing since there were fewer parts to break; and more interior space. What he failed to mention was that the car ran beautifully over 20mph, reaching that speed in the first place was something of a challenge. This was only too evident in the test drive as they struggled to gather sufficient momentum in the Clee Hills and mountains of Wales. Tested on a 1 in 5 gradient at the top of the Bwlch-y-Groes Pass in 1975, the car performed respectably when it was able to make its approach above 20mph. Below that speed it could barely maintain 5mph over the summit.
Issigonis became cross when people called his gearless vehicles 'automatic'. They had no clutch, gearbox or any other form of variable ratio transmission. Instead, forward and reverse drive was taken through a torque converter. The engine was tuned and increased in capactiy to give sufficient performance over a wide rev-band.
Issigonis insisted: "it is inconceivable that people would put up with so much work gear shifting when this could be completely eliminated while also achieveing better overall fuel economy". Among other potential benefits he listed were smoothness of drive even for inexperienced drivers; easy servicing since there were fewer parts to break; and more interior space. What he failed to mention was that the car ran beautifully over 20mph, reaching that speed in the first place was something of a challenge. This was only too evident in the test drive as they struggled to gather sufficient momentum in the Clee Hills and mountains of Wales. Tested on a 1 in 5 gradient at the top of the Bwlch-y-Groes Pass in 1975, the car performed respectably when it was able to make its approach above 20mph. Below that speed it could barely maintain 5mph over the summit.
The oldest surving gearless car
SOL 258H is the oldest of three 'ADO20' production Minis modified to carry a 4 cylinder '9X' engine and is the oldest surviving gearless car. Purchased by Issigonis in 1975, a repair sheet of 1983 describes it as the 'preferred transport of Sir Alex Issigonis' and a trail of paperwork shows it was used extensively as part of his development programme over a period of seventeen years.
As part of the development sliding windows replaced winding windows; external door hinges replaced concealed ones; and front-end proportions were reshaped for efficienct installations of a more compact '9X' engine. All three 'ADO20' Minis featured the revised vertical strut suspensions requiring the spare wheel to be mounted under the boot in a cradle while the battery was moved to sit under the bonnet. To minimise weight, aluminium body panels such as those used on competition versions of the Mini were fitted. On SOL 258H, the alloy wings and bonnet have survived but hte deterioration of the doors and boot lid necessitated their replacement with steel in the mid 1980s. Always referred to in reports as 'the green car', the original shade was Connaught but in 1985 it was re-sprayed Tundra and given a complete re-trim.
Enging: 4 cylinder 1500cc 9X
Speed: 83 mph on test
Transmission: forward and reverse via a torque converter
Registration mark: 2-door salon SOL 258H
SOL 258H is one of a number of Minis now on show at the Atwell Wilson Motor Museum, including a 1989 Mini ERA Turbo, also from the Heritage Motor Centre
As part of the development sliding windows replaced winding windows; external door hinges replaced concealed ones; and front-end proportions were reshaped for efficienct installations of a more compact '9X' engine. All three 'ADO20' Minis featured the revised vertical strut suspensions requiring the spare wheel to be mounted under the boot in a cradle while the battery was moved to sit under the bonnet. To minimise weight, aluminium body panels such as those used on competition versions of the Mini were fitted. On SOL 258H, the alloy wings and bonnet have survived but hte deterioration of the doors and boot lid necessitated their replacement with steel in the mid 1980s. Always referred to in reports as 'the green car', the original shade was Connaught but in 1985 it was re-sprayed Tundra and given a complete re-trim.
Enging: 4 cylinder 1500cc 9X
Speed: 83 mph on test
Transmission: forward and reverse via a torque converter
Registration mark: 2-door salon SOL 258H
SOL 258H is one of a number of Minis now on show at the Atwell Wilson Motor Museum, including a 1989 Mini ERA Turbo, also from the Heritage Motor Centre
References for biographical information
Gillian Bardsley, Issigonis: The Official Biography, Icon Books 2006
Design Museum and British Council http://designmuseum.org/design/alec-issigonis [Accessed 1 June 2012]
Design Museum and British Council http://designmuseum.org/design/alec-issigonis [Accessed 1 June 2012]